Florida Senate - 2010                                     SB 782
       
       
       
       By Senator Thrasher
       
       
       
       
       8-00784B-10                                            2010782__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to pretrial detention and release;
    3         amending s. 907.041, F.S.; requiring all pretrial
    4         release programs established by an ordinance of a
    5         county commission, by an administrative order of a
    6         court, or by any other means to facilitate the release
    7         of defendants from pretrial custody to conform to the
    8         policies and restrictions established in the act;
    9         requiring that the defendant meet certain specified
   10         criteria in order to be eligible for pretrial release;
   11         requiring that the pretrial release program certify in
   12         writing that the defendant satisfies each requirement
   13         for eligibility; requiring the court to determine
   14         whether a defendant is eligible to participate in the
   15         pretrial release program after reviewing certain
   16         reports; requiring that the pretrial release program
   17         notify each defendant of the time and place of each
   18         required court appearance; providing that the act does
   19         not prohibit a court from releasing a defendant on the
   20         defendant’s own recognizance; prohibiting the
   21         assessment of any fee or charge against a released
   22         defendant other than those authorized by state law;
   23         providing an effective date.
   24  
   25  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   26  
   27         Section 1. Subsection (5) is added to section 907.041,
   28  Florida Statutes, to read:
   29         907.041 Pretrial detention and release.—
   30         (5)(a) PRETRIAL RELEASE PROGRAMS.—A pretrial release
   31  program established by ordinance of the county commission or by
   32  administrative order of the court or by any other means, enacted
   33  or established to facilitate the release of defendants from
   34  pretrial custody is subject to the policies and restrictions
   35  established in this subsection.
   36         (b) A defendant is eligible to participate in a pretrial
   37  release program only if the defendant:
   38         1. Is charged with a misdemeanor; or
   39         2. Is charged with a felony which is not a dangerous crime
   40  as defined in subsection (4); and
   41         3. Has no history of failing to appear at any court
   42  proceeding;
   43         4. Is not, at the time of the arrest, subject to or on
   44  probation for another charge and is not facing charges for
   45  another crime anywhere in this state;
   46         5. Has no prior convictions involving violence. For
   47  purposes of this subparagraph with respect to any prior
   48  conviction, if adjudication was withheld by the sentencing
   49  court, the withheld adjudication is deemed a conviction;
   50         6. Satisfies any other limitation upon eligibility for
   51  release which is in addition to those in this subsection,
   52  whether established by the board of county commissioners or the
   53  court; and
   54         7. Is indigent as defined in Rule 3.111, Florida Rules of
   55  Criminal Procedure.
   56         (c) The pretrial release program must certify in writing to
   57  the court that the defendant satisfies each requirement of
   58  eligibility which is set forth in paragraph (b) before a
   59  determination is made concerning the defendant’s eligibility for
   60  placement in the pretrial release program.
   61         (d) If a defendant seeks to post a surety bond pursuant to
   62  a bond schedule established by the administrative order, he or
   63  she must do so without any interaction with, or restriction by,
   64  the pretrial release program.
   65         (e) The court shall determine whether the defendant is
   66  eligible to participate in the pretrial release program after
   67  the pretrial release program evaluates the defendant’s
   68  eligibility and reports its findings to the court.
   69         (f) The pretrial release program shall notify every
   70  defendant released under this subsection of the times and places
   71  at which he or she is required to appear before the court.
   72         (g) This subsection does not prohibit a court from
   73  releasing a defendant on the defendant’s own recognizance.
   74         (h) A defendant who is released pursuant to a pretrial
   75  release program may not be assessed any fee or charge other than
   76  those authorized by state law.
   77         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.